Jamie Gomez was naturally curious when he played a telephone message six months ago with somebody identifying himself as the president of the Daytona International Speedway.

He was even more surprised when he returned the call and actually spoke to Joie Chitwood.

Now that fans have so many other options to spend their entertainment dollars on, Chitwood is committed to reaching out to as many customers, including Jacksonville’s Gomez, as possible to make sure he provides a good experience.

Although his duties as the speedway’s president keep him busy — including Tuesday’s appearance with NASCAR’s new sixth generation race cars at Jacksonville City Hall — he always finds time to make cold calls to ticket holders from previous races.

The rest of his staff do the same, all trying to find ways to make each race more memorable than the last.

Gomez, who attended last July’s Coke Zero 400, was one of those surprised fans.

“I filled out a survey, and he actually called me back to talk about it,” Gomez said after watching mayor Alvin Brown proclaim Tuesday as “NASCAR Day in Jacksonville, Fla.” “He listened to what I had to say, and he asked if I didn’t like anything else. It was strange he didn’t ask me what I thought was good.”

Changes in the economy, as well as other distractions, have forced Chitwood and his staff to ask fans what they expect when they come to the track. He knows if a fan has a bad time, he can always head down the road to Walt Disney World, Universal Studios or Sea World, make a quick trip to the beach or give another speedway a chance.

That’s why there’s so much effort in leaving well enough alone and concentrating on making corrections.

Attendance and television ratings have stalled in the past five years. In the process, tracks have learned a valuable lesson — they rarely get a second chance to make a good first impression.

“We’re in competition with other race tracks, sports properties, other entertainment choices,” Chitwood said. “When they come to Daytona, you have to make sure they feel like they’re getting their value.

“I can never control the racing on the track. Everybody’s definition of a good race and a bad race is different. But what I can control is the other elements of their experience, whether it’s the pre-race, the intrigue, the infield atmosphere, the ancillary activities. I have to make sure I’ve done that well so matter what happens on the track, the fans have a good experience.”

Chitwood sometimes sits in the stands to get unsolicited ideas.

Other speedways have gotten the message, too. Talladega Superspeedway, Phoenix International Raceway, Bristol Motor Speedway, Michigan International Speedway, Miami-Homestead Speedway, Kentucky Speedway and the Richmond International Raceway all have created fan advisory boards to suggest changes.

Constant improvement

“Even the best venues need to retool from time to time in order to maximize the experience,” said Richmond board member Brian Johnson.

Pocono Raceway and Dover International Speedway will work together to host a Daytona 500 viewing party next week in Philadelphia. The Texas Motor Speedway will open its grand ballroom for its own viewing party.

Chitwood prefers a “mystery shopper” approach. The track reaches out to hundreds of fans after each event, including a mass mailing of surveys. When Chitwood finds somebody who’s upset with his speedway, he sometimes asks for a second chance by offering them free tickets.

“The minute you think you’ve covered it all, you’re not the person who should be running it,” Chitwood said. “You have to be prepared to make changes.”

Fans didn’t like smoking in the grandstands, so Daytona now is smoke free. They also didn’t like the congestion at the Turn 4 tunnel during the Rolex 24 at Daytona, so the track closed it off to car traffic and made it pedestrian-only.

“It’s so easy to sit at home and watch it on TV,” Chitwood said. “We have to continue to make this experience great, make it so compelling that it gets you off your couch, in your car and drive to the track.”

NASCAR is making similar fan-oriented pitches. The sanctioning body reacted to the overwhelming reaction by fans to the older Car of Tomorrow. They wanted a return to manufacturer identities, and starting with Saturday night’s Sprint Unlimited exhibition race at Daytona and the season-opening Daytona 500 on Feb. 24, they will get it.

The new generation car — Clint Bowyer’s Toyota Camry, Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Chevrolet SS and Brad Keselowski’s Ford Fusion — have been on a national tour since last Thursday. After making stops in Detroit, New York, Newark, Bristol, Conn., Arlington, Va., and Atlanta before making a final pit stop at Jacksonville.

Brown embraced the downtown appearance, donning a NASCAR cap and racing gloves while posing for pictures in front of Earnhardt’s car.

“It’s nice NASCAR is going back to its roots,” Brown said of the new car. “The road to Daytona is in Jacksonville.”

Gomez was there, too. He wanted to tell Chitwood personally how much he appreciated the telephone call.

“I couldn’t believe he would take the time to talk to me,” he said. “I was impressed.”